Chapter Text
Carmilla
Carmilla sat in the very back of the theatre, feet propped up on the seat in front of her, watching mindlessly at the "show" on stage. The school was performing some sort of play, or musical. Carmilla wasn't even sure. The only reason she bothered showing up was because her best friend of 7 years, Lafontaine, forced her to with a promise to hook her up with more cigarettes. Of course, Carmilla would never turn down an opportunity for free cigs- even if that meant watching high school students make fools of themselves.
Carmilla sighed and leaned her head back against the wall. Now thinking of cigarettes, she really craved them. Her fingers drummed against her thigh. She couldn't- she promised Lafontaine she'd stay for the whole show. Carmilla turned her head to said friend next to her, their leg crossed over the other, seeming to be intrigued with whatever was happening on stage. Carmilla rested her hands on the back of her head and leaned back. She rolled her eyes and closed her eyelids.
Lafontaine was a big theatre geek. Last summer, they convinced Carmilla to go to a 3 week Summer Acting camp. It was the worst experience of Carmilla's life. Full of "what do you mean you haven't seen this play?" and people with ego's far too big than they should be. Of course, Carmilla enjoyed some part of it. She made out with some girl named Elsie in one of the bathrooms. But the happiness was short lived when this information was spread around the whole entire camp (apparently theatre geeks love to gossip.) She truly hated every thing about that camp. But, Lafontaine asked so she decided to give it a try. They're still making it up to her for that.
Lafontaine was Carmilla's only friend- well, at least the only person in this god damned school Carmilla could stand long enough to list as her friend, or the only person Carmilla ever called her friend. This had to be the worst school, worst town anywhere.
The town spent half their money over the coarse of 12 years just to build a damn bridge- which again, took 12 years to build. No- not even build. Just fix up a bit.
So, from the wasted money, the schools were shitty. There was literally no requirement to be a tutor; all you had to be was willing to do it. Most of the teachers were shitty as well. They never did a good job teaching the students, and boy were they terrible people. There were a couple of good ones, well basically only one.
Mr. Crawford- the art teacher. He was basically insane, in a sense. Carmilla has had an in-depth conversation with the man about tangerines. All the students loved him, and he actually taught well. The rest of the teachers that taught well were terrible people. The school sucked, the people sucked, and the town sucked. Honestly, Carmilla's surprised she even had one friend.
It was then that Carmilla heard the abrupt sound of clapping that she realized she had dozed off. She yawned and stretched out her arms and legs, earning a pointed look from Lafontaine.
"Did you seriously fall asleep?" They said in in disbelief. She shrugged in response and jumped to her feet.
"I came to your show, didn't I?" She replied nonchalantly. They rolled their eyes.
"Yeah yeah." Lafontaine slipped cigarettes out of their pocket and slyly slid it into Carmilla's leather jacket. "I swear to god sometimes the only way I can get you to leave your house is with the promise of cigarettes." They grumbled. Carmilla hummed in agreement and waisted no time in rushing out of the theatre, not even giving a second thought to wait for her friend.
She just needed to feel the toxins reach her lungs.
Lafontaine
Lafontaine sighed as they watched Carmilla scurry off into the dispersing crowd. They knew they were a bad friend for doing this, for letting her addiction rule over her like that. But, it's not Lafontaine's place to say what she can and can't do. Besides, it's the only way they can get Carmilla to actually do things instead of brood all day. It's only a matter of time until she turned 18; at least this way they can control it. There were a lot of reasons why Carmilla smoked too, and it was her only stress relief. They knew she didn't have the best home life.
Her mother was a highly successful business woman, and always left Carmilla and her brother alone. Carmilla always took care of Will, though he never appreciated it. He always would disappear without telling Carmilla where he went, would always make her worry. They had another sibling; Mattie. But she took after their mother, being her second hand woman. With her whole family blaming her for her father's death, they knew it was hard for Carmilla.
A few years ago, Carmilla had an addiction to pills. Her father was trying to drive her to rehab, but she grabbed the wheel and forced them to swerve off the road. He died on impact, and after that, her whole family turned against her. It was sad really, because Carmilla blamed herself too. But Lafontaine didn't blame her; they knew it had to do with the way the drugs affected her brain. Lafontaine was the only person Carmilla has, so they make sure to watch over her in the best ways they can.
They sighed and started walking out with the dispersing crowd, searching for the familiar leather outfit. It was then that they felt an arm hook into theirs. They turned to see their friend of many years, Perry. They smiled widely.
"Hey!" Lafontaine greeted.
"Hey! Did you like the show?" She asked. They shrugged.
"It was alright. Main guy kinda ruined the vibe at the end." Perry and Lafontaine met Freshman year while acting in a play together. The two instantly connected, and became great friends. They were soon trying out for another play, as well as Perry's best friend Laura. Laura Hollis was basically a tiny ray of sunshine, but there's also something dark about her. Lafontaine chose to ignore that part though, because all they wanted to do was pinch the girl's cheeks and listen to her babble on Doctor Who.
"Hm. Agreed." She looked around a bit. "Have you seen Laura? She was by my side a moment ago." Lafontaine looked around the moving crowd, not spotting the tiny gay anywhere.
"Uh, oh. Tiny gay down!" Perry laughed her sweet laugh. "She can't be that hard to find. I'm sure she's looking for us too. No need to worry." Perry nodded.
"I just... She's so tiny! I worry sometimes." Lafontaine chuckled. "Come on. Let's just get outside and see if she's there."
Laura
Laura ventured around outside of the building, trying to escape the dispersing crowd. Just for a moment, she wanted to be alone, to just worry for herself. Sure, she knows Perry is just worried about her. But it'd be nice if just for a couple minutes, she could pretend that people thought she was capable of taking care of herself, that they didn't need to worry.
Laura sighed and started to head to the side of the building, away from the crowd. Ever since she was a kid, people have wanted to take care of her. There's something about Laura that people just want to care of but not in the good way. They want to make decisions for her. They think that they know what's best and Laura doesn't. People believe that she's some unspoiled virtue that needs to be protected at all costs- but she's not.
When she was 6, her mom died. She never knew much about her, only remembering vague memories. Laura only knows of her mother through pictures and stories. She hardly remembers her voice, her gestures. Only the memory of seeing her die on the hospital bed from a rare disease. Laura's grown up taking care of herself, but people always insist on being over-protective. Random people, her friends, her family. Hell, even teachers. People are always pulling special favors for her, treating her special. Sometimes, it's nice when she needs it. But most of the time, she hates it, and feels like it's excessive.
Laura stopped when she saw a raven haired girl had beat her to the hiding spot of the side of the building. She wore leather pants, combat boots, a black shirt and a leather jacket. She was leaning against the side of the building, her foot resting against the brick wall. Her features were lit from the occasional spark of her lighter, and Laura quickly realized she was trying to light a cigarette. She cocked her head to the side, finding herself intrigued by the girl clad in leather.
Who is that?
Carmilla
Carmilla leaned against the building, far away from the crowd outside. She was around the side of the school were no one could see her, trying to spark her lighter. Carmilla rested her cigarette between her lips and cupped around her lighter, trying to block any biting February wind that threatened to make it disappear.
"Fuck. C'mon." She was getting antsy. Carmilla was craving this for so long, and now it won't even light? She had plenty of fuel, that she knows. This is just the world hating her, trying to remind her yet again not to smoke because that death is too easy. Carmilla shook the lighter, and tried again. I knew I shouldn't have brought my bic lighter. Great.
"Smoking on school grounds?" Said a soft voice. Carmilla lifted her gaze to see sunny brown eyes staring at her. The girl stood a good couple feet from Carmilla, standing there in a white sundress with buttons running down the middle, looking like a human form of a ray of sunshine. Carmilla smirked slightly, and went back to trying to light her cigarette.
"Got a problem with it?" The girl shook her head.
"No. You just seem to be having trouble." Carmilla shrugged.
"I am trouble, cutie." The girl huffed, and took a couple steps to Carmilla.
"Need help?" Carmilla cocked an eyebrow, and eyed the girl up and down. She definitely didn't seem like the type to smoke- her eyes were too full of hope and body too alive. But, giving the girl the benefit of the doubt, she decided to ask.
"You ever smoke?" As she expected, the girl shook her head. Carmilla scoffed, and started flicking the lighter again. "You wouldn't know how to do it then."
"I know how a lighter works." Carmilla rolled her eyes. "I think I can handle myself just fine." The girl huffed.
"Just let me try." The girl reached up and touched her hand to Carmilla's, and it was then that a flame arose from the lighter, igniting the long-awaited cigarette. The two locked eyes, both in disbelief. Were there more sparks coming from the cigarette, or inside of her from the small touch? She stared into the sunny brown eyes for a moment, both still in momentary bewilderment. When the girl pulled her hand away Carmilla laughed, and lowered her hand, sliding the lighter in her pocket.
"Are you a sorcerer of some sorts?" Carmilla teased, holding her cigarette between her forefinger middle finger. She took a long drag, letting the toxins reach her lungs, calming the craving she's had all evening.
"Maybe." Carmilla let go of the air she was holding, the smoke flowing past her lips. God, it felt good to do that. She waited far too long for that. "So how old are you anyway?" The girl then asked. Carmilla smiled.
"17." Laura cocked an eyebrow.
"And you're smoking?" Carmilla eyed the smaller girl up and down, taking in her appearance. One of her buttons were mismatched, and here she is criticizing her.
"You're one to judge." She said, bringing the cigarette back to her lips. "Especially when one of your buttons is out of place." Carmilla took a victory in the way the girl looked down at her dress, realizing her buttons were done completely wrong. Carmilla laughed coolly and took a drag, letting the toxins invade her lungs.
"Oh, great." Carmilla enjoyed a bit, watching her hands work as she tried (and failed) to re-do the buttons. Carmilla rolled her eyes and rested her cigarette between her lips. I can't let this go on- this is disastrous.
"Let me." Carmilla ignored the way her heart quickened as she began to fix the girl's buttons. At some point two were undone, and she could see her toned stomach. Any other day, and Carmilla would've been tossing sarcastic comments and acting cruel to the girl in an attempt to push her away. However, there was something different with the smaller girl, but Carmilla will think about it later. Right now, she just needs to fix these god forsaken buttons.
"I think I recognize you from somewhere." Laura suddenly muttered. Carmilla's eyes met hers, and she tried to ignore how close their faces were just then. She looked back down to the buttons.
"You go to this school?" She asked, her cigarette bobbing with her lips. The girl nodded.
"Yeah, but, that's not it. I recognize you from somewhere. I know you." Carmilla picked up her gaze again, only now traced the girl's features. Up close, she realized then that she knew the tiny girl as well. How does she know her? Carmilla cocked her head to the side and furrowed her eyebrows.
"Wait a minute. I know you from somewhere too..." Carmilla went back in her memories, trying to figure out where she knew her, when it hit her. "A.C.T Summer camp." Carmilla muttered with a smile, going back to fixing the girl's dress.
"That's right! Oh my god, you were the girl that..." Carmilla nodded.
"Mhm. And you were the chick that sang My Chemical Romance at the final show and got everyone to start screaming and dancing." She smiled slightly at the memory. She remembered how she walked on the stage, and thought about how small she looked. At first she was nervous, stuffing her hands in her pockets, rolling back on her heels. But eventually, the girl started to get more comfortable on stage. By the end, the crowd was jumping and screaming, her voice sending chills down everyone's spine.
"I'm Laura. Hollis. Laura Hollis." Carmilla chuckled, and patted her stomach when she finished the last button.
"Carmilla." They locked eyes again. "Great way to meet, huh?" Laura chuckled, and Carmilla had to go back to leaning on the wall to calm her pacing heart. She took another drag of her cigarette, letting it burn her lungs.
"You know, even if you weren't 17 you still shouldn't smoke." Carmilla rolled her eyes, and blew out the smoke in her face. She's heard those same lines in so many different versions; it's become as meaningless to her as air is to a fish. Laura peered at Carmilla, doing her best to look disaffected by the smoke as she crossed her arms.
"People have been telling me that since the day I started, cupcake. The words have lost meaning." Carmilla brought the cigarette to her lips for another drag. Laura watched as Carmilla blew the smoke out in the air, slowly dissipating to the atmosphere.
"I don't know how you do it." She muttered. Carmilla shrugged, and held it out.
"Wanna try?" She asked, half jokingly. Laura chewed on her bottom lip for a moment, eyeing the toxins between her fingers. To Carmilla's surprise, she shrugged.
"Might as well." This girl's just full of surprises . Carmilla smiled.
"Already two minutes of knowing you, and I'm already a bad influence." Laura rolled her eyes. Carmilla cupped her chin and rested her thumb under her bottom lip, tugging down so her lips parted. Laura stared into Carmilla's eyes intensely as she placed the cigarette between her lips. "Take a deep breath, then suck in like you've just seen something really scary." Carmilla watched as Laura's shoulders lifted, immediately grimacing as she started to inhale the cigarette. Carmilla could tell she wanted to cough and sputter out. But hey, this is what she wanted, and Carmilla's glad to prove why she shouldn't smoke
"Hold it..." She commanded, and Laura kept sucking it in. "Hold it..." Tears started reaching her eyes. "And..." Carmilla pulled the cigarette out of her mouth. "Let go." Laura blew out the air with such exaggeration, soon coughing and sputtering. Carmilla simply laughed and brought the cig to her lips, tasting Laura as she took in another drag.
"That's awful!" She exclaimed. Carmilla laughed some more and shrugged.
"That's what you wanted, right?" She coughed and sputtered some more.
"Yeah. But I wasn't expecting that . I can literally feel it killing my lungs." She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as though it could help the burning in her lungs. Carmilla was glad the girl found the cigarette so disgusting, being sure she'd never do it again. "How do you do it?" Carmilla shrugged and blew out a puff, looking to the stars above.
"It got easier each time. Plus, I don't care too much if my lungs die." She brought the cigarette to her lips again. "God knows every other part of me is already dying." Carmilla muttered before sucking in the poison.
"Poetic." Carmilla hummed in agreement. "So how come I've never seen you around?" Carmilla smirked slightly.
"No one ever notices me, cupcake. It's nothing new." Carmilla pulled in another drag, letting it infiltrate her lungs in some relief.
"You're definitely someone I would notice." Carmilla looked away from the stars and to Laura, who was now closer than she was before. She smiled, and blew smoke in Laura's face. Laura grimaced, and waved away the smoke. "Are you ever going to stop doing that?" Carmilla chuckled darkly.
"It would take a lot to get me to stop smoking." Laura took a step closer, their bodies almost touching in such a way it felt as though she was teasing Carmilla.
"Like what?" Laura said in a low voice, shooting a shiver down her spine. Carmilla shrugged.
"Who knows?" She brought the cigarette to her lips, but didn't have time to take in a drag because she suddenly felt Laura's lips on her cheek, her hand on her shoulder. Carmilla went wide eyed for a moment, not used to a touch so soft. Carmilla didn't think one's lips could be so soft, that something as simple as this could send a supernova of nerves exploding inside of her. She didn't even notice that Laura had pulled the cigarette away until Laura's lips left her skin.
"Guess I just found something." Laura muttered, crushing the cigarette beneath her heel. She giggled and scurried off, leaving Carmilla dumbfounded. Carmilla brought her fingertips to her cheek, reliving where Laura's lips once were.
For the first time in a long while, she didn't feel the need to suck in another cigarette.
Lafontaine
They finally found Carmilla, though somehow she looked lighter. They supposed it was the cigarettes, but there was always something so solemn after she smoked. This was different. They could vaguely see a smile on Carmilla's lips as they made their way to their truck. Clearly, something was up.
They climbed into the vehicle, Carmilla following suit. The two buckled in, and Lafontaine could smell the perfume Carmilla uses to cover up the smell of cigarettes. Only this time, the underlying smell of cigarettes wasn't as strong. That's unusual- I must conduct an experiment on this. Lafontaine cleared their throat and revved the engine.
"So where'd you go?" They asked, pulling out of the school's parking lot in the hectic storm of cars.
"What'd you mean where'd I go?" Avoiding the question- clearly she has something to hide.
"After the show. Where'd you go?" Carmilla took a moment to answer. "The side of the school." They nodded.
"Ah." They ignored an angry teen honking his horn at Lafontaine. "So what'd you do?"
"What do you mean what did I do?" Avoiding the question again. Something happened . "I just... Smoked." They nodded their head slowly again.
"Mhm."
"That's all I did!" Getting defensive- another sign. Lafontaine sighed. Whatever happened, they knew she seemed a bit brighter. So as long as it wasn't tragic, it's okay if they push. Carmilla was never one to admit when she was having a good time, or when she was happy. But they can get her to admit why she was.
"Yup." They suddenly realized another tactic they could pull. "I swear to god if you did something damaging..." By suggesting she did something much worse, she'll explain what really happened.
"No, no! I just..." Carmilla sighed and crosse her arms. "I met a girl." It never fails. Lafontaine grinned widely.
"A girl you say?" They teased.
"Yeah. A girl." Carmilla never got crushes, nor would ever get attached to many people. So the fact that she was saying she met someone is a good thing. They need to press on about this and help in every way they can.
"Mind spilling the beans on who?" Carmilla sunk lower in her seat.
"Laura. Hollis. Laura Hollis." Out of the corner of their eye, they saw a rare sight;
Carmilla's genuine smile.
Perry
Perry walked arm in arm with Laura down the road from the school. Perry lived only a few homes away, so it was only a 5 minute trip to her house. Laura was going to sleep over Perry's that night, and Perry couldn't help but notice Laura seemed more chipper than usual. Sure, the girl was usually a bubbly ray of sunshine, but this was different. Something about her actually glowed, but Perry smelt cigarettes. She wasn't going to confront Laura in the middle of the school parking lot, but now was a good chance to. Because if she's acting this happy, and she smells like smoke; Perry can only worry.
"So where'd you take off to earlier?" She asked, looking down as their feet walked in-sync. Please don't be on drugs . Perry thought to herself. Laura sighed with content.
"To the side of the school." Perry furrowed her eyebrows, and looked back to Laura, who still wore a bright smile.
"What were you doing there?" She asked cautiously. Laura sighed with content.
"I met someone." Laura took Perry's hands in hers and started walking backwards. Perry smiled, relaxed that she wasn't on drugs- just attracted to someone.
"Who's the lucky girl?" She asked, wriggling her eyebrows. Laura laughed and swung their hands back and forth.
"Carmilla." Perry's smile was immediately wiped off her face. Carmilla? Oh no no no. Being friends with Lafontaine meant dealing with Carmilla occasionally, and boy Perry didn't like her. She always acted cool and disaffected, and darn it she can be mean. Laura can't like someone like that- no no. Perry can not allow that.
"You can't fall for her! She's bad news." Laura shrugged, her smiling fading too.
"Stop making my decisions for me, Perry." Perry sighed.
"I'm not, I just... She really is bad news. You know I can smell the smoke, right?" Laura looked down to the ground.
"She smokes. So what?" Perry sighed again.
"Laura, you just met her. You don't know what she's like." Laura shook her head.
"Then I'll find out." Laura snapped back. Perry's eyes went wide and her head went back a bit as if the words were being punched in her face. Whoa. Laura only lashes out like that when she was passionate about something, or I guess in this case someone... Perry sighed. Once Laura meets her, she's sure this crush will go away. It's one of those "bad boy" mentalities; Perry's sure of it.
She's sure it'll go away once she meets her again.
Carmilla
Carmilla sat on her windowsill that night, staring at the stars. She couldn't stop thinking of the girl from earlier, the way she kissed her cheek, the scrunched up little face she makes when she's annoyed. They only talked for a minute or two, but it felt so much longer than that. She touched her cheek again. When she told Lafontaine of Laura, they told her that she was going to be in a play with them, as well as Laura's best friend and Lafontaine's good friend Perry. They said they'd help in whatever ways they can, and Carmilla thanked them.
She wondered why the girl made her heart beat so fast, made her thoughts race, made her lighter finally spark alive like she did every other part of Carmilla as soon as she spoke. Carmilla wanted to know more of the girl with caramel hair and sunny brown eyes, with uneven buttons and a bright smile. She wanted to know more of her. Carmilla smiled at the thought, the name ringing in her head.
Laura Hollis.
Laura
Laura had escaped onto Perry's roof, sitting on the tiles and staring up at the starry night. The raven-haired girl from before hasn't left her mind all night. She still remembered the way she parted her lips with her thumb, how she stared into her eyes as she put the cigarette between her lips. Laura couldn't believe she was so bold as to place a kiss on her cheek, but it got her to stop smoking. And she kissed her cheek, so that's a plus. Laura sighed, trying to get rid of the overwhelming swelling in her chest at just the name.
Carmilla.
She has to know more.